Georgian government announces plan to outlaw political opposition
While Moldova celebrates pro-EU victory, Georgia shuns Europe
Oct 21, 2025
A rally in Tbilisi against Georgian Dream authoritarian ways and in support of EU membership. (Photo: facebook.com/zourabichvilisalome)
Just over four years ago, Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine were known as the “Association Trio,” coming together to sign a memorandum that expressed their joint commitment to “cooperate to enhance their political association and economic integration with the EU.”
Today, the three states are moving in very different directions.
Moldova is on the clearest path toward EU accession following parliamentary elections in which President Maia Sandu’s pro-European Action and Solidarity Party scored a decisive win. Ukraine, of course, still aspires to EU membership, but finds itself embroiled in a war not of its choosing, facing an enemy intent on snuffing out Kyiv’s EU desires.
And then there is Georgia.
The country’s ruling party, Georgian Dream, has defied the country’s constitution to make a geopolitical u-turn, shunning EU membership in favor of an authoritarian system designed to cement its leadership in place for the foreseeable future.
In recent days, Georgian Dream has doubled down on its authoritarian drift, unveiling plans to ban nearly the entire spectrum of opposition parties. On September 27, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced the imminent filing of a lawsuit “to declare all parties under the umbrella of the ‘collective national movement’ unconstitutional.”
The move targets opposition parties of all kinds, labeling them as ‘satellites’ of Georgian Dream’s bête noire and erstwhile governing party, the United National Movement (UNM). The pending ban confirms what critics long suspected; a parliamentary investigative commission launched in early 2025 was always intended to lay the groundwork for outlawing the opposition.
The commission’s 470-page report reframes recent Georgian history to justify the crackdown. It pins blame for the 2008 Russo-Georgian War squarely on former president Mikheil Saakashvili’s UNM administration, and claims that all major opposition parties “emerging from the National Movement” are obstructing the creation of a “healthy political system in Georgia.”
With the judiciary already firmly under Georgian Dream’s influence, the Constitutional Court is widely expected to uphold the government’s pending ban.
The government’s priorities were equally clear on the international stage. Addressing the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, Mikheil Kavelashvili, the nominal president installed by Georgian Dream’s rubber stamp parliament, avoided mentioning Russia while only briefly touching on Georgia’s occupation issues. Instead, he spoke at length about “ultimatums from the West” and the need for a “multipolar international order,” echoing a message that comes from Moscow and Beijing.
From the podium, he declared: “We are open to dialogue and cooperation, but we also demand respect and fair, dignified treatment. What the Georgian people will not tolerate is the language of ultimatums, blackmail, or intimidation.” The remarks were consistent with years of Georgian Dream rhetoric that the West has wanted to use Georgia to open a ‘second front’ against Russia in the Ukraine conflict – a widely discredited claim.
Kavelashvili did not miss the chance to pose for pictures with US President Donald Trump, telling him at a UN dinner that “it was time to start our relations from a clean slate.” He said Trump replied, “Yes, I will look into this matter.”
By contrast, pro-European Georgians celebrated on September 29 as Sandu’s party secured victory in Moldova, despite what some EU member states described as “unprecedented interference by Russia, including with vote-buying schemes and disinformation.”
From across Europe, officials congratulated Sandu on the party’s victory. No such congratulatory message was offered by Tbilisi.
Asked by reporters why Georgia had remained silent, Kobakhidze quipped: “As long as Moldova remains a member of the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States), it will be difficult for us to offer congratulations. Once Moldova leaves, we will revisit the issue.” The CIS, a relic of the post-Soviet space, is effectively defunct. Georgia itself quit in 2009 after its war with Russia.
Salome Zourabichvili – who claims to be Georgia’s legitimately elected president, and is now a prominent opposition leader – hailed the Moldovan result: “It is a signal of hope as we continue our common European path with Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia.”
Speaking at a Warsaw security conference, she pushed back on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s claim that Europe has lost Georgia. Zourabichvili insisted that the Georgian opposition has not “lost yet, we are still fighting, we are still on the streets, I am on the streets.” She went on to call for more effective support from the EU.
Meanwhile Georgia also holds municipal elections on October 4, but with most opposition parties boycotting the process and large parts of the pro-European electorate refusing to recognize the vote’s legitimacy, turnout is expected to hit historic lows. In practice, Georgian Dream faces virtually no competition.
Irakli Machaidze is a contributing writer covering the South Caucasus.
Just over four years ago, Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine were known as the “Association Trio,” coming together to sign a memorandum that expressed their joint commitment to “cooperate to enhance their political association and economic integration with the EU.”
Today, the three states are moving in very different directions.
Moldova is on the clearest path toward EU accession following parliamentary elections in which President Maia Sandu’s pro-European Action and Solidarity Party scored a decisive win. Ukraine, of course, still aspires to EU membership, but finds itself embroiled in a war not of its choosing, facing an enemy intent on snuffing out Kyiv’s EU desires.
And then there is Georgia.
The country’s ruling party, Georgian Dream, has defied the country’s constitution to make a geopolitical u-turn, shunning EU membership in favor of an authoritarian system designed to cement its leadership in place for the foreseeable future.
In recent days, Georgian Dream has doubled down on its authoritarian drift, unveiling plans to ban nearly the entire spectrum of opposition parties. On September 27, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced the imminent filing of a lawsuit “to declare all parties under the umbrella of the ‘collective national movement’ unconstitutional.”
The move targets opposition parties of all kinds, labeling them as ‘satellites’ of Georgian Dream’s bête noire and erstwhile governing party, the United National Movement (UNM). The pending ban confirms what critics long suspected; a parliamentary investigative commission launched in early 2025 was always intended to lay the groundwork for outlawing the opposition.
The commission’s 470-page report reframes recent Georgian history to justify the crackdown. It pins blame for the 2008 Russo-Georgian War squarely on former president Mikheil Saakashvili’s UNM administration, and claims that all major opposition parties “emerging from the National Movement” are obstructing the creation of a “healthy political system in Georgia.”
With the judiciary already firmly under Georgian Dream’s influence, the Constitutional Court is widely expected to uphold the government’s pending ban.
The government’s priorities were equally clear on the international stage. Addressing the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, Mikheil Kavelashvili, the nominal president installed by Georgian Dream’s rubber stamp parliament, avoided mentioning Russia while only briefly touching on Georgia’s occupation issues. Instead, he spoke at length about “ultimatums from the West” and the need for a “multipolar international order,” echoing a message that comes from Moscow and Beijing.
From the podium, he declared: “We are open to dialogue and cooperation, but we also demand respect and fair, dignified treatment. What the Georgian people will not tolerate is the language of ultimatums, blackmail, or intimidation.” The remarks were consistent with years of Georgian Dream rhetoric that the West has wanted to use Georgia to open a ‘second front’ against Russia in the Ukraine conflict – a widely discredited claim.
Kavelashvili did not miss the chance to pose for pictures with US President Donald Trump, telling him at a UN dinner that “it was time to start our relations from a clean slate.” He said Trump replied, “Yes, I will look into this matter.”
By contrast, pro-European Georgians celebrated on September 29 as Sandu’s party secured victory in Moldova, despite what some EU member states described as “unprecedented interference by Russia, including with vote-buying schemes and disinformation.”
From across Europe, officials congratulated Sandu on the party’s victory. No such congratulatory message was offered by Tbilisi.
Asked by reporters why Georgia had remained silent, Kobakhidze quipped: “As long as Moldova remains a member of the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States), it will be difficult for us to offer congratulations. Once Moldova leaves, we will revisit the issue.” The CIS, a relic of the post-Soviet space, is effectively defunct. Georgia itself quit in 2009 after its war with Russia.
Salome Zourabichvili – who claims to be Georgia’s legitimately elected president, and is now a prominent opposition leader – hailed the Moldovan result: “It is a signal of hope as we continue our common European path with Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia.”
Speaking at a Warsaw security conference, she pushed back on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s claim that Europe has lost Georgia. Zourabichvili insisted that the Georgian opposition has not “lost yet, we are still fighting, we are still on the streets, I am on the streets.” She went on to call for more effective support from the EU.
Meanwhile Georgia also holds municipal elections on October 4, but with most opposition parties boycotting the process and large parts of the pro-European electorate refusing to recognize the vote’s legitimacy, turnout is expected to hit historic lows. In practice, Georgian Dream faces virtually no competition.
Irakli Machaidze is a contributing writer covering the South Caucasus.
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